Govee Neon Rope Light Review

I own plenty of lights in my one-bedroom apartment, but nothing like the Govee Neon Rope Lights (available at Amazon) . Until recently, I thought smart light strips weren’t my style, but I do love some good mood lighting. This is more than your average light strip—it’s like a piece of art. The 10-foot flexible rope twists into almost any design to hang on your wall and displays millions of colors, creating a series of moving neon lights that blink, shimmer, and dance.

Out of all the lights I have—track lighting, an oversized floor lamp, an Ikea table lamp, and diffusers that cycle through a rainbow of options— the Govee Neon Rope Light is a favorite. Here’s why.

LED light strips vs. rope lights: What's the difference?

When it comes to smart lights, light strips and rope lights are two popular options that, while similar, have several differences. For starters, light strips have a lower profile than rope lights. Strip lights are thin, usually less than 1/4-inch in thickness, and stick to flat surfaces by peeling off the adhesive backing. It can be tricky to maneuver certain light strips around corners and edges (the process is similar to prepping baseboards with painter's tape).

Rope lights are made up of a thick tube, typically up to 3/8-inches in diameter, where the lights are housed. Since the light fills the entire tube, and not just a certain part (like the top of a light strip), it can be easier to install around corners and edges. Both smart light strips and smart rope lights typically support millions of color options, including tunable whites, offer fun features, and work with smart assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant.

What we like about

It’s (fun) and easy to create your own lighting designs

Made of silicone, the Govee Neon Rope Light is flexible and easy to bend into a variety of designs. The construction of the rope light feels strong and durable, especially when compared to Govee’s smart light strips, which have a flimsy feel.

I hung the lights on one of my empty living room walls, which measures 8-feet by 4-feet. I tried multiple designs—spirals, shapes, bubble letters—finally landing on a wave design that takes up most of my empty wall space. The installation itself wasn’t difficult, but it did require some intuitiveness on my end since the included paper instructions only listed four barebones steps.

The lights come with an adhesive backing that peels off, but it also includes several small brackets and nails to further secure the light strip into the wall. This part of the installation wasn’t as clearly spelled out to me in the instructions as it could've been, but I was able to figure it out after a few minutes. I also found it a bit tricky to hang the lights by myself due to the size of the cord, so I recommend having a second set of hands to help.

Thanks to the durability of the rope lights, you could easily move the smart lights elsewhere in your home without damaging the light at all, which isn’t always the case with adhesive light strips. The rope’s flexibility makes it easy to bend around corners and rounded edges, too.

One bummer, for me, is that the rope light isn’t great for spelling words, which I was keen on trying. You can make a big bubble letter as a way to monogram your bedroom or home office, but creating a word design with these lights isn’t possible. But for a shape or abstract design, the Govee Neon Rope Lights are a creative way to show your true colors at home. The lights can also be used to outline a piece of art or object hanging on your wall to draw attention to something specific or create a focal point in the room.

A rainbow of color possibilities—with cool features to make you boogie

The Govee app, available for iOS and Android, puts a rainbow of colors right in your pocket. In the app, you can choose from one of 16 million colors and a bevy of awesome preset color combinations for seasons, holidays, moods, and activities like reading, watching sports, and work. Parts of the rope light can be set to a different color or you can tune the strip to a single shade. Another cool feature of the Govee Neon Rope Lights is that you can create a new color scheme and save it to your profile to use in the future. The brightness and motion of the rope light can also be adjusted in the Govee app, putting you in control of these artful lights.

I love the way the lights can be tuned to any color to match my mood or the activity I’m doing. I found myself setting the light to the sunrise setting in the morning, a more energetic mixture of greens and pinks during my workday, and a soft yellow or blue glow in the evening to keep my space calm. I love having the light as part of my daily routine, and it livens up my space when I have friends over for a game night.

The rope lights also have a built-in mic that, when in Music Sync mode, can display lighting patterns to the beat of a song, movie, or any noise happening, making them a fun way to color up apartments, dorms, game rooms, home office, and more. The lights also support scheduling and timer features and work for remote control from anywhere.

You can control the lights by voice with Alexa and Google Assistant

For those times when you can't find your phone (or don't want to get off the couch to go find it), you can use smart assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant to control the Govee Neon Rope Lights using a compatible smart speaker or smart display. To connect the lights with Alexa, enable the Govee Home skill in the Alexa app. To connect the lights with Google Assistant, add the lights in the Google Home app. You'll be all set for hands-free control over the color, brightness, power, and presets.

What we don’t like

The rope light is too short and can’t be extended

This is less of a gripe and more of a realization in hindsight. The strip I tried is 10-feet long, which I assumed would be too long and take up way too much space on my wall. I was wrong. I love the way it looks on my apartment wall so much that I wish I had gone for the bigger size. Once I started shaping the rope light to create designs, the length went a lot faster than I thought it would. Unfortunately, you can’t extend the length of the rope light like you can with some light strips. If you need a longer length, check out the Govee 16.4-foot Neon Rope Light.

Should you buy it?

Yes, the Govee Neon Rope Lights are a fun addition to any room.

If you’re looking to add light to a room, whether you want neon colors or a soft glow, Govee's Neon Rope Light is a great choice. It's easy to install and makes my days working from home more joyful and evenings reading or watching TV more enjoyable. Plus, the app has tons of features and customizable options to truly make these lights a work of art you'll love showing off to friends and family. The rope lights also make a great gift for tweens and teens, as well as an alternative lighting source for dorm rooms and apartments.

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